


Starstruck Velma

by misslivvie



Category: KISS (US Band), Scooby Doo - All Media Types
Genre: Almost Kiss, Alternate Universe - Detectives, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Attempted Seduction, Cat and Mouse, Daphne is an icon in this story tbh, F/M, Hypnotism, Manipulation, Private Investigators, Seduction, Visions, also this is a somewhat lighter take in that there won't be all the smut lol, btw I'm basing the gang off their live-action selves here, i'm not gonna do that to velma i love her, starvel, this story basically follows along with Tanooki's story so just read that if you want context
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:34:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misslivvie/pseuds/misslivvie
Summary: Mystery Incorporated, the best private detective agency in KISSteria City, is hired by the K.I.S.S. Agency to help them nab the notorious jewel thief, Starchild, before he can take down anymore of their agents and steal the famed Black Diamond. But after a disastrous attempted trap at the museum, Velma finds herself receiving more attention from Starchild. Will she be able to resist his hypnotic charms? Or will she be another one of Starchild's victims?Based on TanookiRoxx's story "Starstruck"
Relationships: Velma Dinkley/Paul Stanley (KISS)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	1. The Museum

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TanookiRoxx](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TanookiRoxx/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Starstruck](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20693201) by [TanookiRoxx](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TanookiRoxx/pseuds/TanookiRoxx). 



> So this particular story is inspired by TanookiRoxx's awesome story "Starstruck". I was so inspired that I decided to write my own little offshoot of it for Writer's Month last August, and then it turned into a full story! So shout-out goes to Tanooki and her awesome mind, because I just love her writing; seriously, she's brilliant. This story is still a work in progress, because school and life got in the way of continuing it. But make no mistake, I'm still working on it! For now, enjoy Chapter 1!!

Velma had a bad feeling about staking out the museum, but Fred had insisted nothing bad would happen. And as the night progressed, she began to believe him; they had planned out everything pretty thoroughly.

Their group had been hired by the K.I.S.S. agency to assist them in their manhunt for Starchild, a notorious jewel thief. Not much was known about his real identity or where he came from, but he was perhaps the most successful jewel thief. He had robbed billionaires of their fortunes and stolen from various museums, all the while somehow getting away uncaught and unscathed. How he did it? No one knew. 

Mystery Inc. had been called because the K.I.S.S. agency’s hunt for Starchild had resulted in the compromising of three K.I.S.S. agents, names undisclosed, two of which disappearing without a trace and the other coming out of his encounter with Starchild unable to do much of anything. The head of K.I.S.S., alias Demon, had sent him on a sabbatical, and so far no one had heard from him.

“So you want us to track Starchild’s movements,” Daphne stated as they read through their copies of the Starchild file.

“Figure out where he’ll strike next,” Velma continued.

“Catch him in a fiendishly genius trap,” Fred said eagerly.

“And eat all the free finger food?” Shaggy finished.

“In a word… yes.”

It had been rather easy to predict where he would strike next; he would no doubt make an attempt to steal the Black Diamond again. So they had put out a decoy story about the Black Diamond being taken to a secure facility for safekeeping next week, and began to plan their trap.

Velma left the intricacies of the trap to Fred like she usually did, while Daphne busied herself with the layout of the museum and Velma figured out the museum’s security system, and Shaggy trained Scooby Doo to attack Starchild on sight. Demon even said he was impressed how fast yet thorough they were in planning, which made them all a bit smug; Mystery Inc. was ranked one of the most professional private detective agencies for a reason, after all.

The night of the trap, they made sure everything was set and ready before meeting in front of the display case containing a decoy Black Diamond. “Alright, gang,” Fred got down to business as soon as they all arrived, “let’s split up. Shaggy, you and Scooby take the west wing. Daphne, you take the south. I’ll take the north, and Velma, you take the east. Everyone have their earpieces?”

Velma tapped hers, and heard the noises in her ear as the others tapped theirs. “Good. Let’s nab ourselves a jewel thief!”

Honestly, Velma wasn’t too worried about what would happen to her. She had connected her phone to the museum’s security system, which meant if any of the motion sensors she’d placed in the close vicinity of the diamond’s display case went off, the alert went right to her phone. She also rigged an alert that would notify the gang if she was attacked. She also had a taser conveniently disguised as a pen and her best pair of running shoes on. She was reasonably confident she would hold her own against Starchild if he attacked her.

She was making another round through the east wing when she suddenly heard echoing footsteps. She froze and swung her flashlight around in the direction they came from. The impulse came to call out to ask who was there, but she bit it back; it could be Starchild trying to lure her into a trap.

Suddenly the sound of footsteps came again, but from… the opposite direction? Velma swung her flashlight around. She suddenly remembered seeing Daphne walking in that direction before, and give her the all-clear signal before continuing. She tapped her earpiece. “Velma to Daphne,”

Her earpiece crackled, then Daphne’s voice came through. “Yeah?”

“Did you circle back to where I saw you a few minutes ago?”

“I don’t think so. Why?”

That was strange… “I just heard footsteps coming from that direction,”

“Zoinks,” Shaggy’s voice came through. “What if it was like, Starchild?”

“I don’t know. But I’m going to keep patrolling. It could be him trying to take me out so he can steal the diamond.”

“Stay alert, gang,” Fred interjected. “Velma, you be especially careful; he might be in your area. And no matter what, stay within the perimeter.”

“Got it,”

“Roger that, Fred,”

“Like, got it,”

Velma continued walking, making sure she went in the opposite direction of where she had heard the footsteps. She had been walking not even for another five minutes when she heard the same echoing footsteps again. Not even two seconds later, her phone vibrated in her coat pocket. She dug it out and looked at the screen: a motion sensor had been triggered in her area. After a moment of debate, Velma headed off to investigate. It could be Starchild.

“I just got an alert on my phone,” she said over her earpiece. “A motion sensor got triggered in my area. I’m going to investigate now.”

“Okay,” Fred’s voice answered. “Be careful, Velma.”

“I will,”

When Velma reached the spot, she found nothing. She swung her flashlight around in confusion. Had it been a false alarm? The motion sensors were a little sensitive; maybe a speck of dust had accidentally set it off?

But even so, as she looked around, the hairs on her arms and the back of her neck began to stand up. One would think after years of investigating cases Velma would have been used to the feeling of being watched. But nope; it still creeped her out. Her hand began to drift to her pocket to grab her pen…

When suddenly something rolled out from behind an entranceway into an exhibit. She whirled around and aimed her flashlight on…

A small black cylindrical box patterned with silver stars.

Velma suddenly saw the small vents, and her eyes widened in terror. Uh oh…

She tapped her earpiece. “Velma to everyone, you have to get over here right now! It’s—”

The can suddenly popped open, releasing a cloud of purple gas. Velma covered her mouth and nose and tried to make a break for it, but was suddenly grabbed from behind and restrained.

“Velma?” she heard Daphne’s voice crackle through. “Velma, what is it?”

“Velma, do you copy?” Fred asked urgently.

A sudden hand plucked the earpiece off her ear and flicked it away. “I don’t think so,” a smooth voice purred into her ear. “Two’s company three’s a crowd, after all.”

Velma almost involuntarily relaxed at whatever effect that voice was having… but then remembered this person was attacking her. She tried to get her hand into her coat pocket for her taser pen, but whoever it was managed to wrestle her to the ground. He wrenched her hand away from her mouth and pinned her wrists to the ground. “Sleep tight, feisty woman,” the voice cooed out.

Velma’s head began to spin as she began to inadvertently breath in some of the sleeping gas. She began to see double as she tried to cough it out. She caught sight of a face—a stark white face with red lips pulled back in a smirk and a black star outline around the right eye—before she blacked out.

* * *

When Velma came to, panic initially jolted through her as she wondered where she was, but as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized she was still in the museum. She seemed to be… not in the perimeter anymore. She was lying on a bench, and when she tried to move her arms, she realized her wrists had been tied behind her back. When she tried moving her legs, she discovered her ankles had been tied together as well.

“Awake at last,” a voice suddenly said. It was the same smooth voice from before. “Sleep well?”

Velma raised herself up to sit, and had to push her glasses back up with her shoulder before she could turn her head. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw who it was.

It was Starchild—there was no mistaking him. His suit didn’t leave much to the imagination—a skin-tight black bodysuit with an open chest that cut down practically to Venezuela, that was scattered with rhinestones trailing right down to the place Velma’s eyes were immediately drawn to. She quickly tore them away, knowing that was probably the intention of the costume. Though who knew why he wanted it that way. Seven inch platform heels completed the look. Dark curly hair fell in front of his currently smirking face.

Even so, even despite the situation she was in—abducted, in an unknown part of the museum, tied up, and probably about to be interrogated—her mind couldn’t help remarking: Starchild was handsome. Incredibly handsome. Like maybe classic Hollywood mixed with 80s heartthrob…

Handsome or not, though, he was still a criminal.

Starchild looked her over, and smirked. “Not going to say anything? Not even to say hello? Ask me how my day’s going?” 

“You drugged me with sleeping gas and tied me up,” Velma retorted. “I don’t care if you have a pulse, much less how your day’s going.”

Starchild just grinned in amusement and laughed. “Well if you’re not going to ask, I’ll just tell you.” He started pacing back and forth in front of her, arms crossed and voice light, as if he was simply discussing the weather. “There I am, in my hideout, trying to figure out how I’m going to get the Black Diamond, when I hear over the news that it’s going to be taken to a “secure location”. So I decide to try one last time to take it. Breaking in here has been a breeze in the past. But what do you suppose I find when I get here?” His smile turned slightly dangerous. “My prize has been surrounded and put under heavy guard by a group of meddling kids and a dog. And then I realize,” he smacked his forehead and gasped mockingly, “I’ve been played! Fooled! Bamboozled!” He sighed and shrugged. “I should’ve known Mystery Incorporated would get called in soon. Demon was bound to swallow his pride eventually.”

Velma frowned slightly at that. “How do you know about Mystery Incorporated?”

“Oh, I keep an eye on all potential thorns in my side,” he grinned and reached out to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear. “Even if it’s a very pretty thorn.”

Velma leaned her head away from him. “Well, congratulations; you were played. You should’ve left when you had the chance. The Black Diamond’s going to be taken away from you and the rest of my group will find us. You’ve trapped yourself.” She smiled humorlessly at him. “If I had known Starchild, the famous jewel thief, was going to be this dumb, I would’ve put a tracker on me somewhere.”

“Au contraire, pretty thorn. I’ve had my escape plan plotted out since before I broke in. Granted, it had to be modified once I saw your little group, but no matter. And I decided I was going to have a little fun with it, too.”

The way he grinned at her made Velma’s mind start to turn. He had set off a motion sensor… and yet she could deduce he had successfully eluded her friends without triggering the others. He was a master jewel thief, he would have known about silent motion sensors. So why… “You set off the motion sensor on purpose.”

Starchild shrugged, smiling carelessly. “Guilty. K.I.S.S. has been running around like a chicken with its head cut off for ages trying to catch me.”

“How could you possibly know all their methods and plans?” Velma wondered out loud. “You don’t work for them. Unless… Unless you used to be a K.I.S.S. agent yourself.” Starchild paused, and she went on, mostly to herself. “No, not an agent. But you do know their inner workings. The only other one who would know information like that is Demon… so you must have some connection to Demon.”

Starchild’s face seemed to tighten, and from within the shadows Velma could see him frown slightly. “You’re smart,” he finally said.

“I’ve been told so,”

Starchild smiled and went to squat down in front of her. “You’re a funny one, Velma Dinkley. You’re a thorn in my side like the rest of your group of meddling kids…” His hand reached out to brush his knuckles across her face. “But what a very pretty thorn…”

Velma leaned her head to the side, but somehow… somehow she couldn’t look away. Something was keeping her eyes in place, looking at Starchild’s brown ones. It was almost a magnetic attraction.

Starchild smiled, and while his smile was teasing, it had a touch of something that Velma didn’t like. “What’s the matter, Velma? Can’t look away?”

“I…” Oh no… was she seriously attracted to Starchild? The criminal mastermind that just knocked her out with sleeping gas? “How are you doing that?”

“I have very… magnetic eyes. You can’t look away, can you?” His voice had gone lower, to the same purr it had been when he jumped her in the hallway. “It’s alright; many people love my eyes.” He raised himself up to place his hands on either side of her, to look right into Velma’s identical brown eyes. “Focus your eyes on mine. Relax all of your muscles and listen only to the sound of my voice.”

Despite her mind screaming at her to resist, Velma found her shoulders sagging and her body relaxing. She couldn’t look away…

Starchild let his eyes become swirling purple spirals. “Continue looking into my eyes and listening to the sound of my voice. It’s relaxing, isn’t it, pretty thorn? Oh, look at your eyes; they look like they’re getting so heavy…”

Immediately, Velma’s eyes began to droop. Resist. You have to resist. “I need to stop you,” she slurred out.

“Oh no, no, no, there’ll be plenty of time for that. But right now you’re too sleepy to stop me. Every breath you take fills you with relaxation, and when you exhale, your eyes droop lower, and lower, and lower, as you fall asleep into a lovely dream.”

Velma’s eyes finally slipped closed, and her head fell forward. Starchild caught her head and lifted it back up. “Good girl… Have you ever felt so relaxed, Velma?”

“No…” Velma mumbled out.

“Now, why don’t you put your trust in me, and I can give you whatever you want. What’s your ultimate fantasy, pretty thorn?”

“… Happy…” Velma breathed out. “Being happy…”

“I can make you as happy as you want—”

“—with myself.”

Starchild fell silent, genuinely caught off guard. “… Go on,”

Velma continued on, her voice telling the deep trance she was in. “Being able to look in a mirror and like the person I see. My friends… don’t get it. Daphne’s beautiful… She could do anything and guys would love it. I want to be… like that… Where I do something and people don’t think I’m weird… or awkward… or a nerd… even though I am…”

For a second, Starchild was speechless. He had never encountered anything like this before. Just who was this woman? Suddenly, for the first time in his entire criminal career… he didn’t want to do anything to this woman. He didn’t want to do anything to ruin this mind. How? Normally he couldn’t care less about the people he hypnotized. But Velma Dinkley… What was it about Velma Dinkley that made him hesitate?

He sighed heavily. He didn’t have much time left before her friends found them and his window of escape closed.

He pressed two fingers to her forehead. “Sleep,”

Velma slumped down onto the bench, out cold. Starchild looked over her briefly before continuing. “When I say the trigger word, you will stay asleep, but you will be released from your trance. You won’t remember anything after closing your eyes. But you will know that nothing happened to you. Do you understand?”

“Yes…” Velma mumbled.

Starchild sighed. It seemed he would have to do some investigating of his own, for once not about the Black Diamond. He wondered what he would find. “Starstruck.”

* * *

“There she is!”

Daphne ran into the Japanese wing of the museum towards the bench, where lying on her side completely out was Velma. How did she get all the way from the first floor to the third floor?

Fred and Shaggy ran into the exhibit, Scooby bounding at Shaggy’s heels. “Did you find her?” Fred asked hopefully.

“Like, is she okay?” Shaggy pressed.

Daphne knelt down to look her best friend over. “She’s okay. I think she’s still knocked out.” How strong was that sleeping gas Starchild had used?

Scooby went over and licked Velma’s face. Velma flinched, then turned her head to the side. Her eyes slowly blinked open, and she looked up blearily at them. “Where am I?”

“You’re still in the museum,” Daphne said to her in a relieved voice, and Fred went over to help sit her up. “We’ve been looking all over for you. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Nothing happened… Where’s Starchild?”

“He got away,” Fred said mournfully as he and Daphne untied her. “At least he didn’t take you with him.”

“Yeah,” Velma mumbled. The last thing she remembered was gazing at a pair of eyes that were purple spirals… She’d been hypnotized. Or had she? She had the strange feeling that nothing had happened to her afterwards, even despite it being common knowledge that you couldn’t remember much after you were hypnotized. Her head spun when she tried to stand up, and she was forced to sit back down.

“Here,” Daphne fished a water bottle out of her bag and handed it to her.

“Like, what’re we gonna tell Demon?” Shaggy asked aloud as Velma unscrewed the cap. “When he finds out Starchild got away, he’ll, like, cook us.”

“Reah, rook us,”

Fred shrugged. “We’ll tell him the truth, I guess. Velma’s fine, the Black Diamond’s still safe, and even if Starchild got away we were ready for him.”

“It’s not too substantial a loss,” Velma said aloud. “I think I’ve figured some things out about Starchild.”

They turned to her interestedly. “What did you figure out?” Daphne asked.

“I’ll explain later. Right now, we should sleep. We’ve been staying up late the last few days planning everything, and I personally want to go back to getting eight to nine hours of sleep every night.” She would tell them, just not now. She wanted to say it all when Demon was present, because she had the feeling he knew more about Starchild than he was letting on.

They packed up their equipment and got into the van, Shaggy insisting on getting breakfast before they all went home to get some sleep. Velma sat down in the backseat of the van… and felt something in her jacket pocket. She made sure no one was looking, and reached inside to feel what it was. It was… a piece of folded up paper?

Velma took it out. It was purple and had a black star drawn on it in pen. A thought suddenly occurred to her and she felt her other pocket for her taser pen. She groaned quietly. Stupid Starchild had taken her taser pen…

She looked down at the note, and after a moment of thought unfolded it. All that was written was a single sentence, in what looked like had been done in a quick yet neat scrawl.

_See you soon, pretty thorn._

Velma stared blankly down at the note. Then she glanced up at her friends, making sure no one could see her, and folded it back up and put it back in her pocket. Hopefully it was just Starchild messing with her. She wouldn’t tell them about this… not just yet.


	2. Confronting the Demon

It seemed sleep was what Velma needed, because she ended up sleeping for most of the day and woke up in the early afternoon. A quick message to the gang’s groupchat confirmed they had all done the same thing. Luckily Daphne had called ahead to Demon and told him they would let him know when they could come in and debrief with him on how the night went. 

Velma still wasn’t looking forward to that; she knew the minute she told people she had been knocked out and probably hypnotized by Starchild, panic would ensue. Even if she insisted nothing had happened, they would insist she had no real way of knowing that. And really she didn’t—she didn’t have any memory of what happened after Starchild lulled her into closing her eyes. All she had was a strange certainty that nothing had happened. But that wouldn’t be enough for people. 

Even so, she knew it had to be done. So she dragged herself out of bed, got dressed, grabbed a quick breakfast/lunch, and waited for Fred to text her that they were outside her apartment building. It wasn’t hard to spot Fred’s van that had become their designated mode of transportation; it was reminiscent of a black government van, except it was painted a robin’s egg blue and had neon green hubcaps on the wheels. It was incredibly outlandish, but Fred stubbornly refused to repaint it, so bright blue it stayed. 

She got into the backseat, Shaggy and Scooby moving over for her, and buckled her seatbelt. Daphne passed her a white paper bag. “Here. I went to that cafe by our office building and got us breakfast.” 

Velma opened the bag to find a small egg, ham, and cheese sandwich inside. “Thanks, Daphne,” 

“Like, you okay, Velma?” Shaggy asked as Fred pulled out of his parking spot. 

“I’m fine,” Velma nodded. 

“You sure?” Fred asked, glancing at her in his rearview mirror. “You did get knocked out by Starchild last night.” 

“Really, guys, I’m fine,” Velma assured. “I checked for any injuries or bruises when I got home, and I didn’t find any. Let’s just get to Demon’s office so we can tell him what happened.” 

Fred still looked skeptical. “Okay… If you’re sure.” 

“I am sure,” 

But as Fred continued driving, Velma put her hands in the pockets of her coat… and her fingers brushed a folded piece of paper. And then she remembered; she hadn’t taken the note Starchild had left for her out of her pocket. 

_See you soon, pretty thorn._

She didn’t want to think about when “soon” was.

* * *

When they arrived at the K.I.S.S. agency building they headed straight up to Demon’s office on the top floor. They stepped out of the elevator and headed for his office, when suddenly someone turned the corner and almost ran into them. It was a man, older than them, with a build that was so slender it bordered on skinny, pale skin, rather feminine features, and long black hair. He was about as tall as Daphne. And as he was walking he appeared to be straightening his clothes, but stopped when he saw them. 

“Hi,” Fred said amiably to him. “We’re here to see Demon. Is he in his office?” 

The man tilted his head at them, then nodded in recognition. “Ah, you’re Mystery Incorporated, aren’t you? We had heard Demon called you. Demon is in his office right now. I was just there… debriefing on a case with him.” 

Fred was silent for a moment, then he grinned. “Great! Thanks. Hope to see you again.” 

The man was about to walk past them when his eyes suddenly fell on Velma. A funny look came to his face. “You,” he said, “you’ve encountered Starchild, haven’t you?”

Velma stood there for a second as she tried to think of how to respond. But she couldn’t think of what to say. How did he know? 

He answered before she could ask that. “I can feel it on you; his hypnotic touch always radiates off of those who have been caught in his trance. Be careful, Velma; once he has put you under his spell once, he will never let you go. It has happened before. If you aren’t careful, your next encounter with him will be your last taste of free will.” 

And without another word, he walked briskly away. It wasn’t until he had disappeared around the corner that Velma realized she had never told him her name. 

“Who was that?” Fred said aloud. 

Shaggy was visibly shaking, as was Scooby. “Like why did he have to be so creepy?” 

Daphne scoffed and rolled her eyes. “I swear, this place is full of weirdos. Come on, let’s just go to Demon’s office.”

When they entered Demon’s office, they found it was still as shrouded in shadows as it was before. But strangely, as they entered, they were just in time to see him straightening his shirt and wiping his forehead with his sleeve. He looked up at them. “Ah, there you are.” He sat down at his massive oak desk as the gang sat down in the chairs in front of them, and his face turned stern. “So… What happened?” 

The gang all glanced at each other, and then Fred decided to speak. “Well… We set everything up the way we planned. And then at some point Starchild broke into the museum.” 

“And? Did you catch him?” 

“Well… No.” 

Demon frowned darkly, and Velma heard Shaggy whimper in fear. “Then what happened?” 

“Starchild must have figured out our trap,” Daphne said. “He managed to lure Velma into a trap of his own, then knocked her out with sleeping gas.” 

Demon’s eyes widened and he rounded on Velma. “You got captured by Starchild?” 

Velma sighed quietly, but nodded. “Yeah. He knocked me out, and when I woke up, I was tied up in the Japanese wing on the third floor.”

“Did he hypnotize you?” 

Here Velma paused. How was she going to say it? 

Her silence was enough for Demon. He cursed. “Goddammit. I can’t have anyone else getting hypnotized by that…” he sighed in frustration and sat back. “I suppose you don’t remember what he did to you?” 

Velma shook her head. “No, I don’t. But nothing happened.” 

“How do you know that for sure?” 

“I just… I just know nothing happened. I don’t know why, and I don’t know how, but I know nothing happened after he got me to close my eyes.” 

Demon sighed heavily. “Fine. Did you at least figure anything out concerning him?” 

Everyone looked over at Velma. “Yeah, actually, I did,” she said, steeling herself for what was about to happen. “I figured out you know Starchild. From before you started this manhunt. And that he knows, or used to know, you too.” 

Demon’s face went blank, but he still calmly replied, “Of course I knew who he was. He’s a criminal, but he never became a bigger threat until a few months ago.” 

“But what about the part where Starchild used to know you?” Daphne reminded him. “Is that true?” 

“That isn’t relevant,” 

“But what is relevant is that we didn’t get enough information on Starchild,” Velma spoke, unaware of where this newfound bravery was coming from. “We need more than we’ve been given if we’re going to catch him.” 

“Velma’s right,” Fred nodded. “If we knew more about him, maybe we could set a better trap.” 

“Much of the information you want is classified,” 

“But, like, how’re we supposed to help if we, like, don’t know anything?” Shaggy pointed out. “L-Like, no offense, Mr. Demon, sir.” 

Daphne nodded and gestured to Shaggy. “See?” 

Demon looked like he wanted to argue and throw them out of his office. But finally, he just sighed heavily. “Fine. I’ll give you more information. Is there anything specific you want?” 

“The files on the three missing agents would be nice,” Velma piped up. 

“And details on Starchild’s other robberies would be good too,” Daphne added. “So we can see if there are any patterns.” 

“Your best profile of him, psychological and physical and biographic information included,” Fred threw out. 

“And like, visual cues so Scoob knows what to look for so he can attack,” Shaggy finished, scratching Scooby behind the ears. 

Demon raised an eyebrow. “It seems you’ve got everything figured out,” 

“We wouldn’t be as great as we are if we didn’t think ahead,” Fred said proudly. 

“Fine. I’ll get you the info you want, and anything else I think you may find useful. You’ll receive your files tomorrow.”

His tone of voice left no room for argument, so they all accepted that and walked out. They headed out of the building and piled back into the van. 

“Like, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m starved!” Shaggy said aloud as Fred turned on the ignition. “Let’s get lunch!” 

Daphne laughed at him. “We just ate our breakfast not even two hours ago,” 

“Like, exactly!” 

Velma laughed with the others, but couldn’t help falling quiet as Fred began to drive, no doubt looking for somewhere they could eat. The words that that agent had said to her were still playing back in her head. 

Once he has put you under his spell once, he will never let you go. 

If you aren’t careful, your next encounter with him will be your last taste of free will.

_See you soon, pretty thorn._

What was she going to do?


	3. The Second Meeting

Worrying about what she was going to do if Starchild ever made himself known to her again kept Velma up for most of the night. She only got a few hours of sleep, and had to stop at the coffee shop to get a double shot of caffeine in her coffee. 

Fred was the first to notice when she walked into their office. “Velma, you look exhausted,” 

“Yeah… I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night. But I’ll be fine. Any news from Demon?” 

Fred brightened. “Yep! We got the files!” He gestured to the stack of massive files on his desk. “They got here a little while before you did. You wanted the ones on the missing agents, right?” 

“Yeah, I did. I’ll grab them in a second.” 

She went to her own little space to put her coffee cup down on her desk, and went back to get the files. Maybe she hadn’t gotten enough sleep, sure. But there had to be something worthwhile in the files.

* * *

In his lair, Starchild frowned at his computer screen. 

He’d pulled up everything he knew on Mystery Incorporated, which admittedly wasn’t a lot. So he went digging for more. All he had managed to find was news articles and the agency’s official website, and nothing more. 

He zoomed in on a picture so that only Velma was in view, and stared at her for a few seconds. At first glance, he supposed she was pretty enough. She was mousy, with her short brown hair, bangs, and her glasses. It was almost… cute. 

Starchild’s lip curled in disgust. Had he actually just considered this woman cute? Disgusting. The woman was only cute at best. At worst she was one of the plainest people he had ever seen. How could he possibly be willing to spend time on a woman who was like her, even if she was smart, and shrewd, able to figure out his plan almost immediately, and gave him sass, and… and really was very adorable-looking… 

“Being happy… with myself…” Perhaps that was why he was so fixated on her. That couldn’t possibly be her ultimate fantasy. Maybe she was just good at resisting him. 

Starchild gave a sigh of frustration. It seemed his usual methods weren’t getting him anywhere. He’d have to resort to other tactics to get the information he wanted…

* * *

Velma sighed. She’d been pouring through the same three files for hours, scanning them for anything she might have missed. They were the three agents that had gone MIA—Fox, Agent Kulick, and Agent Thayer. Their real names were redacted… in fact most of their personal info was redacted. Velma didn’t mind that, because it wasn’t what she needed to know. But she did mind that there wasn’t more information about the night Agents Fox and Kulick went missing. She had the sneaking suspicion Demon was still keeping information from them, and that was frustrating. How were they supposed to help if they didn’t have the information they needed?

Agent Thayer’s file was a little more promising. He had been investigating a warehouse with another agent, codenamed Space, that they suspected was Starchild’s lair, when he was kidnapped. He had gone AWOL for a few hours, then miraculously appeared back at his apartment. According to his own word, he’d managed to escape and run away, but when pressed for details, he found he couldn’t remember any specifics about what had happened to him. 

That was rather concerning to Velma, and made her think back to her own encounter with Starchild. She was unable to remember anything that happened to her after she closed her eyes. She remembered everything leading up to it, but then the next thing she knew was Scooby licking her face. And yet, she still was incredibly certain nothing bad had happened to her during the blackout. She was certain Starchild hadn’t hurt her, hadn’t done anything, hadn’t assaulted her in any way—she had even checked for bruises. Nothing. She shook her head and went back to the file. 

After Agent Thayer’s encounter, he went back to work, but he was incredibly unhelpful. During briefings and meetings related to Starchild, he constantly had to leave the room because he kept getting hot and flustered. He’d been moved to Archives, but halfway into the day he suddenly began to…

Velma’s cheeks flushed as she read that part. Skip. 

He didn’t stop no matter what they tried. Finally Demon had to be called down to help stop him, but it was only after Agent Thayer… finished… that he finally stopped. Over the rest of the day and the next, he began to zone out, his eyes glazing over. They would roll back in his head and he would even start drooling. After that day, Demon sent him on sabbatical, and told him that if he didn’t snap out of whatever was happening, he would have to be let go. And no one had heard from him since. 

If she was being honest, Velma’s nerves had tensed with wariness as she read through the events once again. Starchild was powerful, more powerful than she’d realized. If he was able to have such an effect on Agent Thayer from just one encounter… what did that mean for her? She couldn’t remember what had happened in the museum; was she going to start acting like Agent Thayer? 

One part did catch her eye. A person down in Archives that day said he had heard the phone ring from Agent Thayer’s cubicle, and then two minutes later chaos erupted. It had to have been Starchild who called him. 

Daphne came into the room. “How’s it going?” 

Sighing, Velma looked up from the page. “I’ve been pouring through the files for hours now, trying to find something we can use. But so far, all I’m feeling is wariness.”

Daphne sat on the edge of her desk. “Why?” 

“Because… You read Agent Thayer’s file, right? And that… incident in the archives?” 

“Yeah…” Daphne looked like she was fighting back a smile. “I feel bad, but that was a little funny.”

“Humor aside, that incident and his behavior after that just… it makes me a little nervous about what’s going to happen to me.” Velma looked helplessly at Daphne. “I don’t remember what happened after I closed my eyes. I have this certain feeling that nothing happened, but what if I start exhibiting the same behavior as him?” 

“Velma, I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Daphne said, in the voice she used when she was absolutely sure about something. “Even if you can’t remember, you know nothing happened. You checked yourself for any injuries or bruises, and you’re fine. Besides, you put up a good fight until you closed your eyes. Whatever happened to Agent Thayer, it’s not going to happen to you.” 

“I hope not,” Velma said lowly. She smiled a bit. “Thanks, Daph.” 

“No problem, Velm,” 

Velma flipped back to the beginning of Agent Thayer’s file. One of the few bits of personal information that wasn’t redacted was an address, no doubt for his apartment. “There’s an address listed here for an apartment. That must be where he lives. Maybe I can go there and ask him what happened.” 

“If you’re going to go, go tomorrow,” Daphne suggested. “It’s getting a little late, plus you look tired. Maybe you should go home a little early today.”

“But if I go now, I can get more information sooner,” Velma argued, standing up to grab her coat. “And we can be one step closer to catching Starchild.” 

“I get that. But you said you didn’t sleep well last night. And if you don’t get a full night’s sleep, how are you going to be able to figure things out effectively? You’ve said yourself that a lack of sleep has been proven to be directly connected with not being able to function in everyday life and not being able to think straight.” 

Using her own logic and words against her; what an unfair move. But she was right—she hadn’t slept well last night, and she could feel the effects of that the entire day. Maybe she would have been able to think better if she had gotten enough sleep. 

Velma wanted to argue, but eventually she just sighed heavily. “You’re right. Fine, I can go tomorrow.”

Daphne nodded, smiling victoriously. “There we go. In the meantime, you should go home. I’ll let the guys know you’re leaving.”

“Are you sure? I can stay…” 

“I’d rather you go home, eat something, and go to bed and sleep.” Daphne smiled reassuringly at her. “It’ll be fine, Velma.” 

After a moment, Velma nodded. “Okay. Thanks, Daphne. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow,”

Velma closed the files and stored them in her desk, making sure to lock the filing cabinet. Then she grabbed her coat and purse and left to go home. She luckily lived within walking distance of their office building, all of them did, which gave her a little time to think as she walked down the sidewalk. Despite having wanted to argue with Daphne that she was fine, and that she could still keep working even if she was tired, she was still happy to go home and sleep. Sleep was just what she needed. Then she could be better equipped to figure out what to do next. 

When she got to her apartment building, she climbed up the stairs and pulled out her key to unlock the door. It was still locked, which she felt slightly relieved by, and she swung open the door to her darkened apartment. She threw her keys into the bowl by the door, went to her living room, and turned on the lights. 

“Hello, pretty thorn,” 

Velma froze. Sitting there on her couch with his legs crossed was none other than Starchild. His red lips were curled up in a smirk. “… Were you just waiting for me to walk in?” It was all she could think of to say. 

“Maybe,” Starchild said innocently. He went back to staring at her. It was almost as if he was scrutinizing and analyzing her. 

Velma didn’t like his gaze. But she also didn’t want to appear as though she was scared. So she simply shrugged and went into her kitchen, setting her purse down on a chair. She covered an oncoming yawn with her hand and went to look through her cabinets for something to make for dinner. 

“Aren’t you going to talk to me?” Starchild said from her living room. He sounded like he was pouting. 

Velma poked her head out of her kitchen to frown at him. “You knocked me out with sleeping gas, kidnapped me, tied me up, and hypnotized me, and now you expect me to make small talk with you?” 

Starchild shrugged unaffectedly. “It doesn’t have to be small talk. A question would be nice.” 

“Fine. Why did you break into my apartment?” 

“I did say I’d see you soon, didn’t I? I always keep my promises.” 

Velma found herself brave enough to scoff. “I find that hard to believe,” 

“Haven’t you ever heard of honor among thieves? Besides,” Starchild’s smirk widened, “I really did want to see you again.” 

… How stupid did he think she was? “Now that I really find hard to believe,” 

“What? I wanted to see your pretty face again.” 

This had to be a bluff of some kind, some detail that was part of a devious plan. Velma left her kitchen to go into the living room again and crossed her arms as she frowned at him. “Here’s some advice: when you have trying to get to me as part of your plan, don’t say things I won’t believe.” 

Starchild tilted his head at her. “I thought it was good,” 

“Perhaps it was, up until you called me ‘pretty’,” 

All Starchild did was raise an eyebrow at her. For some reason, his gaze made Velma feel… exposed. Heat rose to her face. “W-Would you just leave? I’m giving you a chance to leave before I decide to call the police.” 

A sly smirk slipped across his face and he chuckled at her. “Oh, I don’t think you’re going to do that, pretty thorn.” 

“O-Oh yeah? You think so?” Why was she suddenly getting so flustered? 

“I know so.” Velma was about to turn around and go to her purse for her phone when he spoke again. “Why aren’t you happy with yourself, Velma?” 

Velma froze and stared at him. “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Oh, but you do,” Starchild uncrossed his legs and leaned forward, keeping his eyes on her. “Why aren’t you happy with yourself? What makes you so unhappy?”

So many reasons… but she wasn’t going to say any of them. “I-I… I don’t…” 

Starchild slowly stood up. “Yes, you do.” His voice had gone low, hushed. “I can see it; you’re so unhappy with yourself. I understand.” 

“H-How could you possibly understand?” Velma hated how much her voice was wavering. 

She felt rooted to the spot as Starchild took slow steps towards her. “There’s more to me than meets the eye, pretty thorn,” he said softly. His voice was hushed and seductive… oh no. It was going to happen again. He was going to hypnotize her. He was going to put her into a trance. He was… suddenly right in front of her, and Velma realized for the first time how tall he was. His platform boots made him tower over her. Her heart began to pound and she tried to look away, look perhaps at Starchild’s… surprisingly hairy chest. “Oh no, pretty thorn,” he said smoothly, lifting her chin with his finger. “Don’t look away; I want to see those pretty eyes. Don’t you want to see mine again, too?” 

Starchild let his hand snake around Velma’s waist, and had to hide a smirk at Velma’s involuntary shudder. “You can’t help but look into my eyes; my lovely eyes that make you feel oh so relaxed.” He let his eyes turn into swirling purple spirals. 

Velma tried to think about something else. She tried to play “Monster Mash” in her head, that song Shaggy insisted on playing even when it wasn’t Halloween. But she couldn’t look away from those eyes. She couldn’t fight… If she wasn’t so tired she probably could… 

“It must be so exhausting, working on cases without a break.” His voice was making a wave of fatigue wash over her. It was like smooth, rich, dark chocolate. “Trying to catch me must put such a strain on your body.” Starchild’s look was intense. “I bet you wish you could just sleep forever.” 

He wasn’t wrong… Velma could feel her eyes begin to droop. “I…”

“Shhh…” Starchild placed a finger on her lips, cutting her off. “Just relax, pretty thorn. Relax to the sound of my voice as you let your body have a break from all your work. You have no other thought but to finally rest for a little while.”

She so wanted to sleep… Just get a good night’s rest for once during this case. Her body felt so heavy… her eyes felt heavier… 

“And… sleep,”

Velma sagged into his arms. Starchild smirked; this was almost too easy. “Tell me, Velma… what is something you’ve always wanted to do? Where have you always wanted to go?” 

“I… I always wanted to go to a masquerade ball,” Velma said. Her voice was distant, trancelike. “As a date. But I’ve never been to one…” 

Starchild raised an intrigued eyebrow. He hadn’t taken her for the type to like those. “Well then… You’re at a masquerade ball, in a huge, ornate ballroom, and you’re in a beautiful dress. You’re there with your date, like you always wanted. Everyone around you is dancing. The room is dark, lit up by thousands of candles. Everyone is wearing a mask. The chamber orchestra is playing a waltz. It’s everything you ever imagined a masquerade ball to be.”

Velma opened her eyes, and found herself not in her apartment, but in the middle of a huge ballroom. Music filled her ears, and around her were crowds of people waltzing along to the violins. She looked down at herself and had to stop and stare at her dress; an orange top with ruffles on the square-shaped neckline and long sleeves that flared out in the middle of her forearms, and a floor-length red skirt. It was a beautiful dress… 

She looked up, and found a man standing in front of her. He was dressed all in black with a long black cape and black gloves, with a Phantom of the Opera-style white mask that covered only the right side of his face. Her date offered her a hand. “Shall we dance, Velma?”

Did she know that voice? She had heard it before… but Velma’s hand still stretched out to take his. Her date gently pulled her closer, and took up her hand with his, while his other hand settled on her waist. Velma’s heart quickened slightly at his touch, and she put her other hand on his shoulder. “I don’t know how to dance,” she said aloud. 

Her date smiled. “Don’t worry; follow my lead, and you will dance just fine.” 

And without another word, he swept her off to join the other dancers. Velma found herself getting the hang of it almost instantly, and she tried to be as graceful as she possibly could. The intense gaze his date was giving her made her heart beat faster. She couldn’t help observing his eyes were the same brown color as hers. 

“Why don’t you think you’re pretty, Velma?” her date asked as they waltzed. She could feel his hand on her waist, solid and secure. 

“Because I’m not,” she answered truthfully. She was unable to tear her eyes away from the masked face. “I’m not pretty,”

“But you are,” 

A blush rose to her face. “You’re just saying that…”

Her date lifted her chin with his finger. “I would never lie to you, pretty thorn. Look in the mirror; see for yourself.”

They stopped near an ornate mirror, and Velma was turned around to dance with her date behind her so she could look into the mirror. 

There she was. But she looked… different. Her dress fit her perfectly, her hair and glasses didn’t look out of place, and her face didn’t have any flaws. She looked beautiful. It was more than that—she felt beautiful. 

“See?” her date whispered into her ear. “You’re perfect.” 

A smile slowly drifted onto Velma’s face as she looked at herself in the mirror. She did look perfect… 

Starchild smirked slightly as he watched a smile appear on Velma’s face. It was working… soon Velma would be unable to resist him anymore. “You want to keep dancing, don’t you, Velma?”

Velma turned to him, and the way she blinked at him was almost cute. “Can we?” 

“Of course we can,” 

And he swept her off into a waltz. 

Velma felt like she was in a dream, but it was such an incredible dream. She was in a beautiful dress, at a masquerade ball, dancing with her date—her date, not some man who had asked her to dance out of pity. His eyes stayed on her the entire time, and she stared right back. She was just so captivated by his eyes, and the atmosphere—the dim room, the candles, the opera singer, and the music—made this night seem like a dream. But with every second that passed, she was more certain that if this was a dream, she didn’t want to wake up. 

Her date smirked slightly at her. “Something on your mind, pretty thorn?”

Velma’s cheeks flushed, and her voice turned shy. “I was just thinking… I wish I could stay here forever.”

Her date’s smirk seemed to widen. “You could. You could stay like this forever.” He spun her around, and pulled her closer against his chest. Velma’s face grew hot, but she just couldn’t tear her eyes away. “Surrender yourself to me, pretty thorn. Be at my side forever. Surrender, and you’ll never be unhappy with yourself again. You will be beautiful, confident, perfect, forever.” 

For a moment, Velma hesitated. She wasn’t sure why, because it sounded amazing. But a small part of her mind was shouting at her to scream no, to shove him away, to flee. But why? 

“Look in the mirror, Velma.” Her date spun her out, and she caught sight of herself in the mirror once again. “Look how beautiful you are. You could be beautiful for the rest of your life.” 

Velma looked almost longingly at her reflection. “How?” 

Starchild smirked; he had her. He pulled her back in, and his hand wrapped around her waist. “All you have to do is kiss me,” he slowly dipped her, “and all your worries and insecurity will fall away. You’ll know nothing but utter bliss…” 

Velma couldn’t look away even if she wanted to. Her date began to lean in closer. She let her eyes slip closed and leaned in. She wanted to feel beautiful; she wanted to feel happy; all she had to do was kiss him. That didn’t sound so hard. She could feel his hot breath against her lips as he leaned closer, and her heart rate increased. He was so close…

“VELMA!” 

Velma’s eyes opened. Daphne? 

Starchild’s head snapped up, and he came face to face with Daphne Blake, who was staring at them in utter shock and horror. Goddammit. 

“Daphne…?” he heard Velma murmur confusedly. Her eyes started to flutter open. Goddammit.

“Starstruck,” he whispered. Velma’s head fell back and she went limp. Starchild let her slump to the floor, before straightening and pouting at Daphne, who at some point had gone into a fighting stance. “Way to ruin my fun.”

“What did you do to her?” Daphne demanded. 

Starchild rolled his eyes. “Calm down. I didn’t do anything to her…” He smirked at her. “I mean, I was about to, but…”

That was the tipping point, and Daphne ran at him and spun into a kick. He dodged out of the way and laughed. “Ooh, well aren’t you a feisty one?” Daphne kicked at him again, but this time he caught her foot, pulled her forward, and twisted her around to throw her back to the floor. “I’d love to stay and chat, but I’ve got places to be.” He gave her a smile and reached into his pocket. “Au revoir, Miss Blake.” He blew her a kiss, and as Daphne ran at him again he threw something onto the ground and vanished behind a cloud of purple smoke. 

Daphne coughed and waved her hand, and heard the sound of Velma’s window opening. She ran through the fog to the window and saw it hanging open. She ran to the window and looked out, looking for any sign of Starchild. He was nowhere to be seen. 

Sighing in frustration, Daphne turned her attention to Velma, who was beginning to show signs of waking up. She ran over and knelt down, tapping her face. “Velma? Velma, wake up.”

Groaning quietly, Velma’s eyes blinked open. “Daphne?” She sat up. “What are you doing here? I just left…” 

Daphne’s brow furrowed. “Velma, you left over an hour ago. Shaggy wanted to see if you wanted him to get you takeout when he went, and you weren’t answering your phone. What were you doing? And why was he here?” 

“Who?” Velma asked faintly as she sat up. Where was the ballroom? Where was her dress, and her date? 

“Starchild, Velma! The person we’re supposed to be tracking down. He looked like he was about to kiss you! What happened?” 

“I don’t know…” Velma lowered her head as shame began to gnaw at her stomach. “Daphne?” 

“What?” 

“We need to stop him,” Velma looked up at her. She had no idea why Starchild seemed to be so fixated on her, but regardless of how she felt about it, she knew it wouldn’t lead anywhere good. It had to stop. 

Daphne gave her a sympathetic look and squeezed her shoulder. “Don’t worry, we will.”

* * *

Up on the roof of Velma’s apartment building, Starchild cursed out loud. He’d been so close, so close to getting Velma to submit. He’d spent the better part of an hour trying to get through to her, giving her that vision, doing whatever it took to get her to submit to him. 

Admittedly, a part of him had liked the dancing. But that had just been so Velma would surrender; that was it. He suddenly remembered that look she’d given her, when he asked if she wanted to keep dancing. It was like she’d never been asked that before, how she shyly blinked at him with those adorably big eyes… 

“Adorably big eyes?” he said aloud. He made a noise of frustration and kicked a piece of gravel. He hated this, how he was unable to stop himself from thinking such things. 

Normally he didn’t care. He hypnotized people to achieve his goals, and whatever happened to them afterwards, he couldn’t care less. The people he hypnotized meant nothing to him; they were tools, really, and nothing more. He gave them what they wanted, they gave him what he wanted, and he discarded them, and that was the end of it. 

What was it about Velma Dinkley that threw him so much?


End file.
